In the Forest
by AngelWarriors
Summary: A meeting in a forest between see people who can see the light of Etro -Noctis/Stella


**In the Forest**  
**Pairing: Stella/Noctis**  
**Warnings/Spoilers: None**  
**Disclaimer: I don't own Final Fantasy Versus XIII**

Noctis knew that he shouldn't wander too far away from his group of friends, especially since he was currently in enemy territory. After all, these woods _did_ belong to Tenebrae, athough he hadn't been able to sense any enemy solders since they entered the thick forest.

Besides, Noctis was quite well aware that his friends knew how to take care of themselves; after all, they _were_ trained to be his bodyguards.  
Noctis' eyes widened suddenly as he heard the soft movement of water, and decided to move towards the sound. Pushing past the trees, he instantly noticed a female swimming or bathing in the semi-small lake. He was hardly sure of which she actually was doing, considering she was dressed in a lavender bikini that showed off her toned muscles.  
Her golden locks hung softly against her back, and with the slightest movement of her bright locks Noctis could see a tattoo present near her right shoulder blade: a crescent moon with some sort of fancy star connected towards the bottom curve of the moon.

Noctis was hardly able to see what her face looked like considering he could only see her from the back.

For some reason he couldn't help but be slightly reminded of the tale of _the heavenly maiden and her robe,_ and how guys would occasionally stumble on a bathing maiden and steal her robe, forcing the girl to marry them and remain on Earth. Noctis always found the tale considerably cruel and dark.

Yet he couldn't help but to be reminded of it, despite the fact that he knew that this girl, this woman, was no less human than himself.  
Noctis could already sense that this woman was probably a lot like him, in the respect that she had abnormal abilities and could probably see the same light that he could...

The light of Etro.

Yet he couldn't help but feel as if he had met this woman before, although he could hardly say that people who could see the light were that common.

Noctis had only met one other person like himself; a woman who was probably a year or two younger than he was, with violet-blue eyes and dressed in white...

A woman whose name meant "Star."

But Noctis hadn't seen that woman since two years ago, when he saw her staring at the painting of Etro, and their conversation had been very brief.

"I know that you there so you might as well come out," she called out, and Noctis could hear the obvious smile in her voice and slightly wondered if she could tell who he was. However, he did find himself moving from his hiding spot among the trees and closer towards the lake as the woman turned around to face him.

Noctis found himself staring at a familiar face; her violet-blue eyes slightly widened in surprise before her light, pink-glossed lips curled upwards in a slight smirk. He could feel his cheeks redden lightly as he studied the half-clothed woman before him.  
Noctis could see the bikini did her body justice, although he also noticed a scar on her stomach.

The scar was probably years old from the look of it, and in the back of his mind Noctis wondered if it had something to do with the near-death experience she had been forced to endure as a child.

"It's been quite a long time Noct," the woman mused out loud as she started to walk towards dry land, causing Noctis to smile lightly at the fact that she remembered to call him that.

"So you remember," Noctis replied.

The woman nodded, kneeling down next to her white knapsack and taking out a mint-green piece of cloth; _probably a dress or something,_ Noctis thought to himself.

She teasingly replied, "Although I still don't have nightmares of you."  
Noctis smirked at that remark, remembering telling her once that he'd give her nightmares. _"Do you want me to give you nightmares?"_

The woman smiled, noting the fact that he turned around, no doubt to give her some privacy so she could change into her normal clothes; not that she was really planning to take off her bathing suit or anything. She hurriedly pulled the knee-length, mint-green dress over her head before tying the pink ribbon around her waist.

"You can turn around now," the woman said after a moment, as she slipped her bare feet into a pair of white sandals noticing Noctis turn around to face her. She saw that his cheeks were still stained a light-pink color, despite the fact that she was barely showing skin anymore.

"So I take it you aren't used to seeing ladies half clothed?" the woman teased lightly, causing Noctis' blush to turn a bit darker.

"I didn't realize ladies swam in the middle of nowhere," he replied, causing the woman to chuckle lightly.

"I always come here to be alone," she replied, somewhat sensing his next question. "And besides, I know how to take care of myself."  
Noctis nodded lightly. He half expected that she would be able to anyway. She _was_ able to see the light after all, and could probably summon weapons out of thin air as well.

"So are you here by yourself?" the woman questioned, swinging her knapsack over her shoulder. "Or are you here with friends?"  
Noctis slightly cocked an eyebrow at that remark, but decided to answer anyway. "I'm here with friends."

"Then I suggest you find your way back to them," she said lightly. She moved to press her lips against his in a soft, chaste kiss - which was honestly more of a peck than a kiss - before teleporting Noctis back to the city that was a couple of miles away.

Stella Nox Fleuret soflty whispered to herself, a bit sadly, "the next time we meet, Noct, we'll be enemies."

But Stella also knew that she would never forget her time in the forest.

-**the end**


End file.
